Author's note. Bit of a time jump here because I didn't want to drag the story down by just continuing for the trio to exchange letters. Hope everyone likes it, I just thought it would be more interesting for everyone to go right to September the first with an obvious flashback.

A strange pet peeve of mine is fanon in some Harry Potter stories. For instance, when they have networks of child services physiatrists, ect when this clearly doesn't exist in canon. Well, I don't mind these sort of things too much because mostly the story featuring them is well written, just a little distracting as it's obvious their not canon. But what I really hate is things like extra classes eg. Wand lore, I just want to shout 'they don't have those in the books'

I know it's an irrational thing and I know my stories have featured things you could call fanon but I've always tried to be as canon as possible. That being said, I do want this to be an interesting, exciting story so I wonder about what new things I can add that aren't so glaring non canon that you can't bear to read it. So, what good but new things could I introduce to keep the story line riveting? Doesn't have to be major excitement, it can be ordinary things like...a school trip? Just anything that's a little bit different that can make the story better.

Suggestions are welcome.

Enjoy and please review.

Harry's POV

Harry sat on his bed, staring at his truck which had been packed and was ready to be transported. Hedwig was sitting on top of her cage, he didn't want to put her in yet as she'd be there for the best part of the day. It was too early for breakfast but Harry couldn't' sleep even though he'd made this same journey several times. It was always like this, the building excitement, the knowledge that he'd soon be on his way to Hogwarts.

Knowing that he would soon be reunited with his friends was another reason he hadn't been able to sleep, it had been a whole month since they'd last seen each other. Both Ron and Hermione had replied to his first letters by telling him in no uncertain terms that they were with him to the end. He still sometimes read those words, just the fact that they were so determined to stay with him really helped a lot.

Because after all the terrible things he had witnessed and experienced, it was sometimes hard to sleep at night. It wasn't so much that he had bad dreams, they'd been quite varied this last month, but the fact that he lay awake dwelling on them. The faces of those who'd died flashed before his eyes, Cedric, Sirius, Dobby, Fred, Colin, Dumbledore and even Snape. It also bothered him that he didn't know all who had died; he hadn't had a chance to examine all those bodies laid out in the Great Hall. Even though he knew they were all alive, and for the most part well, it was still difficult to forget their dull, staring eyes.

Sirius was the exception, the last time he saw him living, his eyes had been alive and full of shock. That had been one reason Sirius's death had been the hardest, there was no body and therefore, no closure. It was like Sirius could return, he hadn't technically seen him dead so there was always this dull feeling that Sirius could come back. It had taken him a long time to get over this and he knew that he could only really lay that particular ghost to rest once he saw Sirius again.

That wasn't the only thing that kept him awake at night, Ginny also haunted his thoughts. The girl he loved was now a ten year old girl with no memory of him whatsoever. She hadn't gone through the traumatic experience of the Chamber; she hadn't slowly gotten over that and grown into a fun, confident young woman with a talent for Quiddtich. The talent for Quiddtich would still be there and Harry had no doubt that she would become a player on the Gryffindor team one day but everything else?

When he'd first met Ginny, properly in Second year, she had a crippling crush on him. Before it could be resolved, she'd gotten that diary and Harry knew Tom Riddle would have probably nurtured that crush. This would have ensured that Ginny couldn't get close to Harry, couldn't get close enough to confide that something bad was happening but at the same time, she was left entranced by her hero.

Because of this, when Harry saved her almost literally like a knight in shining armour, she just couldn't get over her gratefulness. Her crush was so connected to her terrible experience that she only got over it gradually as she recovered from being in Tom Riddle's power. She could barely talk to him in his Third year but by Fourth year she was able to contribute to a conversation he was in although others always had to be involved. Half way through Fourth year, she was emotionally recovered enough to have a boyfriend and when said boyfriend did not try hurt her, her confidence grew.

Thus by the time Fifth year rolled round, she was able to talk to him quite freely. At the time, it seemed like a startling transformation but he had been so distracted by the Tournament that he honestly hadn't noticed her changing until they were separated for a couple of months. It was like when you grew, you didn't notice the change until it was drastically different from your memory. So to have her talking frankly and normally with him had been a shock to the system but he had liked it a lot, it meant he got to know her properly.

From then, she was really transforming from a little girl into a young woman so by Sixth year he had noticed her, not as Ron's little sister but as an attractive girl. He realised he had feelings for her and she had for him. It wasn't just a schoolgirl crush on her part either but Sixth year; she had gotten to know him and truly liked him for who he was. The time they'd spent together as girlfriend and boyfriend had been so wonderful and his feelings for her hadn't diminished during the long Seventh year. And as far as he was aware, the same went for her.

But she was an innocent ten year old and he was something of a haunted eighteen year old. The old Ginny had experienced Dark Magic like him and so understood him very well. He had been able to open up to her in a way he couldn't imagine doing with just any girl bar Hermione. By the time Ginny reached even her Fourth year, he would be twenty three; would he still develop feelings for a girl so much younger than him? If he did end up going out with her, how could he ever tell her what had happened to him. Ron and Hermione had that advantage, they already knew but any potential partner he had, he would be faced with the agonising decision of whether or not he told them about his life.

"Hmm," he huffed slightly, lying back on his bed. It would probably depend if the secrets he was keeping were affecting his relationship with any girls he might go out with. At least he did have at least a few years to work this out, how many First years went out with someone?

He would always love the Ginny he'd known but he had to start again with her in this life. He would be a friend to her and if it was meant to be, they could easily end up together. But Harry knew he had to accept the fact this might not happen but he tried not to dwell on it. Ginny wouldn't be coming to Hogwarts for a year and as a First year, having a girlfriend wasn't high on his list of priorities.

His train of thought was broken by a grunt from his Aunt and Uncle's bedroom and he suddenly smirked. It had been a rather interesting encounter between his Uncle and Professor McGonagall. Merlin but that was something he'd never ever forget.

Flashback

"Do you have any other questions?" Professor McGonagall asked Dudley who hesitated before asking.

"You got dragons at that school?"

"I'm afraid not," she replied, taking a sip from a fresh cup of tea. "They are highly dangerous creatures, even the hatchlings can cause serious injury. However, Britain does have two resident dragon species I believe. Welsh Green and the Hebridean Black

Harry smiled as his cousin's eyes went wide. He was lucky, or unlucky depending on how you looked at it, enough to have encountered several dragon species. During one of their letter exchanges, Ron had mentioned that he believed the dragon they'd ridden out of Gringotts was a Ukrainian Ironbelly, the largest dragon species there was. Harry was amazed the goblins had put such a ferocious dragon down there but then again that was the point.

He idly wondered if Hermione would start campaigning to free all the dragons locked away underground and frankly abused. Actually, he had a feeling that Ron would support her in this as Ron did have a hidden passion for magical creatures. It had been rather suppressed after all those unpleasant encounters with Hagrid's pets but Ron had made the most effort with Norberta. Well, it was something else to discuss anyway.

With a little subtle encouragement, Harry had gotten Dudley to ask Professor McGonagall several questions about the magical world. Harry had started it off by mentioning things that Dudley would be more or less familiar with from Muggle myths and fairy tales. Harry suspected she'd often done this with Muggleborn families, assuring the relatives of the new Hogwarts student that magic was real and very wonderful.

It was strange seeing his teacher in a non school environment but it was funny to see how Dudley recognised her as a teacher. And as such, even he had an air of politeness that wasn't normally present but Professor McGonagall had such a no nonsense presence that Dudley couldn't act any other way.

"Will we ever see any?" Harry now asked, feeling he should contribute especially as Dudley looked so awed. "Dragons I mean?"

"Not unless you pursue a career involving magical creatures," she replied knowledgably. "Part of our Ministry's job is ensuring that Muggles do not come across them so most wizards do not even see them. However, there are different reservations all over the world so if you were to travel, there is a good chance you may see some."

"Sounds cool," Harry said with a grin. Now there was an idea, he wouldn't mind seeing more of the world, both the Muggle and wizard.

"I believe so," his teacher said briskly before asking. "Will your Uncle be home soon?"

"Very soon," Harry said, glancing at the clock. "He picks my Aunt up from the supermarket and then comes straight home."

"Good, I will return to Hogwarts once he's taken care of," she stated and Harry could have sworn Dudley looked a little disappointed.

"Have you been doing any reading?" she now inquired of Harry and he nodded.

"I've read all my books although I'm not sure how much I'll remember," he said wryly although he was pretty sure he would get by. He'd have close to seven years to read and learn them.

"No matter, as long as you've read the material, it's a good start," she said approvingly. "First years are not expected to be very ahead on the coursework but it never hurts to start early."

"Wait until you meet Hermione," Harry thought to himself with a slight smirk. He was sure you didn't get students like Hermione every year.

Dudley had a slightly glazed expression, clearly he couldn't imagine studying during the holidays for a new school year. Especially when he hadn't even started at that school yet. But Harry was so pleased with how this meeting had gone, right now, it couldn't have gone better. Dudley's tail had been vanished with ease and he'd been interested in what Professor McGonagall had to say.

Now it just remained to be seen if Uncle Vernon cooperated.

"Diddy," came a sudden voice as the front door opened. "We're home darling."

"That's them now, Professor," Harry said softly to Professor McGonagall.

"Bring them in and I'll deal with the tail," she stated and Harry jumped up to obey.

"Uncle Vernon," he said as his Uncle came over the threshold, carrying a shopping bag.

"Boy, go and get the rest of the things out of the car," he ordered as Aunt Petunia started carrying the bags she had through to the kitchen.

"Alright," Harry said before adding quickly. "There's a teacher from Hogwarts here to see you."

There was a shriek and Aunt Petunia dropped her shopping, falling with to the floor with several clangs and crunches. Uncle Vernon almost fell backwards out of the door; he staggered into the doorframe, his face an ugly puce colour. Harry patiently waited a moment before saying.

"Professor McGonagall is here to get rid of your tail, Uncle Vernon,"

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Aunt Petunia twitch at the name, she obviously recognised it. Quickly, Harry added before his Uncle could say anything.

"If you let her get rid of it, you won't have to go to hospital. She's already gotten rid of Dudleys."

"What!" roared Uncle Vernon, managing to pull himself off the doorframe and stagger over to Harry who held his ground. "You...you invited one of them to our house?"

"I did," Harry said calmly as Dudley suddenly appeared and said.

"Dad, you gonna get rid of it, she's waiting?"

"I...I...I...," Uncle Vernon spluttered as Professor McGonagall also appeared from the sitting room.

"I understand you have reservations Mr Dursley," she said briskly, bringing out her wand and making Uncle Vernon flinch violently. "But as your son can attest, it will literally take a second and your pig's tail will be gone. And there will be no mark remaining either in case you are worried about that."

Uncle Vernon's face went bright red but he seemed beyond speaking. Aunt Petunia now came over, her eyes worriedly searching Dudley's.

"Are you alright Didder?" she asked with great concern. "Where you hurt?"

"I'm fine," he said with a shrug. "It's gone that tail...didn't hurt at all."

"All gone?" she questioned and when Dudley nodded, seemed to pull herself together and turned to Uncle Vernon.

"Let her do it Vernon," she hissed. "Think how embarrassing it would be to go to hospital, imagine if it got out. If a paper ever got wind of it..."

End of Flashback

And that of course did it. For all Uncle Vernon's bluster, Aunt Petunia was the one who ruled the household and if she put her foot down, her husband would follow. She was sensible enough to realise that having the tail vanished was considerably less painful and humiliating than having it removed by a surgeon. As awful as having a full grown Witch in their living room, the damage was already done and they might as well take advantage of it.

Professor McGonagall had been eyeing them in a slightly suspicious way but with ridiculously casual ease, she vanished the pig's tail. After Harry had mentioned that he wasn't sure about getting to King's Cross, she said very firmly that if he didn't turn up at Hogwarts, she would come straight back to Privet Drive so of course, the Dursleys had to agree to take him. She then bid everyone goodbye, including Dudley who looked sad that she was going which was still a bit weird.

Once she was away, Harry had taken in all the shopping and put it away before disappearing into his bedroom. It was always best to give his Uncle a bit of space after strange events like that, especially as his Uncle had managed to appear all colours of the rainbow through the encounter. He knew neither of Aunt or Uncle were happy about taking him to King's Cross but he knew they'd use the trip as an excuse to take Dudley out on a day trip.

For Dudley's part, he actually seemed a little sorry to see Harry go although he was looking forward to going to Smeltings. Harry hoped he'd get on alright; he seemed to remember that Dudley had enjoyed his First year. It was only after Third year that the school nurse insisted that he start dieting and Dudley hadn't enjoyed that at all. But it was during his Fourth year that he'd discovered his passion, boxing.

Harry had done his best to subtly to suggest that to Dudley, on the off chance that he managed to get into the sport and lose some weight. But oh well, at least Dudley shouldn't be too horrified to see him next summer. And he'd promised to send some sweets every now and again to his cousin, especially at Christmas.

Harry smiled as he lay on the bed, just a few more hours.

Ron POV

With deep satisfaction, Ron examined the food laid out on the table. One of them was a plate of slightly crispy sausage rolls, a bit fat and misshapen but definitely edible. There was a bowl containing cold pasta mixed with a spicy cheese sauce, chopped ham and onions. Ron had basically made this recipe up but it did taste good so he was happy. He had also made Scotch eggs, BBQ chicken wings and some coleslaw. The other items of his little picnic lunch he had had a lot of help from his mum as he wasn't a proficient cook yet.

With his mum's help, he'd also made caramelised onion and bacon tart, coconut and jam sponge and some homemade pink lemonade. He'd made this all the day before and was now just sorting it out into a hamper basket that his dad had managed to dig out. Fred and George still thought he was crazy but he'd tasted everything he'd made and he knew they were good.

For once, he was going to have something to share with his friends and he was going to enjoy every moment of it. Ginny was a little bemused by what he was doing but she actually seemed interested as well since Ron had said he was going to share this picnic with any friends he made. His little sister was always looking for tips on how to survive Hogwarts and if this worked for Ron, then you could bet she'd be cooking next summer. As for Percy, he saw no harm in it so he had not raised any objections although he still seemed to think that the best way to make friends was to study hard.

"It looks great son," his dad said as he came into the kitchen with a wide smile.

Ron turned round with his own small smile and said.

"Thanks dad, it doesn't look too bad at all."

"I'm impressed you're making an effort son," Arthur Weasley said softly, laying a hand on Ron's shoulder. "I think you'll make a good impression on the Hogwarts Express, food is always a good way to break the ice."

"Yeah?" Ron asked, already knowing that this food would go down well. He wouldn't mind sharing it with others like Neville, Dean and Seamus but he did want to have a proper conversation with his friends first.

"Of course," his dad chuckled. "It's one of the few things that brings up all together, even Percy. Most of the time, we're all scattered across the Burrow except at mealtimes."

Ron nodded, he'd never thought of it that way but it was true. Percy tended to be shut up in his room reading and studying while the twins were either messing about in their room or outside on their brooms. Ginny was a bit more varied, she would spend time her in room but she also liked to play outside, follow her mother about and occasionally visit Luna. Ron had never really seen much of Luan growing up, he hadn't been interested since she was a girl who wasn't interested in Quidditch. He now knew that Ginny also enjoyed sneaking up to ride their brooms but this didn't bother him at all.

As for him, before this summer you would mostly find him outside, playing Quidditch or lazing around. With the exception of Percy, he'd always been trying to get his older brothers attention, especially Bill's. To all the younger Weasleys, even Charlie, Bill had done it all; he'd been Perfect, Head boy, gained Twelve Owls and several Newts and had successfully become a Curse Breaker in the employ of Gringotts Bank. Bill could easily remember their martyr uncles Fabien and Gibeon and he had experienced so much. Of course, Ron knew that one day he would end up with a beautiful woman who had Veela blood, just another feather in his cap.

He frowned slightly; Fleur had met Bill because the Triwizard Tournament had taken place and because Harry was one of the Champions. And when Voldemort had returned, Bill had taken a desk job at Gringotts and had ended up tutoring Fleur who wanted to learn more English. But if they worked to stop Voldemort, would the Tournament still go ahead? Would Harry's name still end up there? Ron doubted that they could just take him down now, they were only in First year after all but still...

It looked like there was another thing to discuss with his friends, could they find a way to introduce his brother to Fleur? His brother and sister in law had been so much in love, they'd worked well together and Ron didn't want to destroy that. Of course, Fleur was still in school so he could hardly do that now but in a few years time, they could do something.

"I'll miss you guys," Ron now said to his dad. "Especially Ginny, will she be okay?"

"It's hard when your older siblings leave for school," Arthur acknowledged. "But this time next year when she's going off to Hogwarts, she won't even remember missing you all."

"I hope so," Ron said seriously. "Would it help if I wrote home?"

"That would be good," his dad said, looking mildly bemused that Ron was acting so considerate. "At least you can tell her which teachers to look out for."

As Ron grinned, his mum came bustling into the room and said.

"Arthur, I hope you're not encouraging disrespect towards his teachers."

"Of course not Molly dear," Arthur said smoothly. "But don't you remember your Herbology teacher at school? You and he did not see eye to eye at all."

"Yes well," his mum said, slightly flustered at her husband's point. "But you got on with him fine and I don't want Ginny to be prejudice against any of her teachers before going."

"I won't say anything really bad mum," Ron assured her quickly. "I'll focus on the good stuff, is that okay?"

"It should be," she admitted as she went to look over his picnic food. "Oh Ronnie, you did such a lovely job, I still can't believe it."

Ron grinned, even though he was eighteen, it was still good to hear honest praise from his parents.

"Have you got everything ready?" Molly asked as she started arranging things into the hamper basket. "We'll be going soon you know."

"Everything's ready," Ron assured her, he'd been having a few sleepless nights recently and had taken to packing all his things as a result. It was funny how that had actually occupied him for several nights. "I've just got to get it downstairs."

"Are you sure?" she persisted, her boys weren't normally this organised, even Percy would end up forgetting something. "Is Scabbers in his cage?"

"Oh yes," Ron said, trying not to sound grim. As a little added insurance concerning that rat, he'd given him some cake laced with sleeping potion. Scabbers normally slept anyway but Ron wanted to make sure he wasn't listening in on their conversation. It hadn't taken proper effect yet but by the time Ron made it to the train, Scabbers should be fast asleep.

"I think he's asleep," Ron said aloud for his parent's sake.

"Well done," Molly said with mild surprise. "I must say, you're so organised Ron, none of your brothers were ever this organised for their First year."

And that comment was enough to light up Ron's face for the rest of the morning.

Hermione's POV

"I still can't believe it," her dad murmured as he buttered his toast. "Our little girl...going off to this magic school...all the way in Scotland."

"Neither can I," Hermione said with a smile as she ate her cereal. "It's going to be so amazing; I can't wait to meet some kids like me."

Her parents exchanged looks, while they had always encouraged her studying and love of books; they had been worried by her lack of friends. There were a couple she got on with alright but they were loners who didn't want to hang out all the time. Coming over to birthdays, the occasional day out, that was fine but not hanging out every afternoon after school like the other kids.

It had been strange, Hermione had met up with this over the summer and they were just how she remembered them. She hadn't wasn't sure what had become of them in later years as she'd lost track of them completely, those last few years at Hogwarts had just been so hectic. Who knows, perhaps she could see them more this year...

"I'm sure you'll make lots of friends, Hermione," her mother now said with a smile. "You will have to write to us every week so we know you're alright."

"I will mum, don't worry," Hermione assured her, wondering what her parents would think of Harry's snowy owl.

Only time would tell.

To be continued.

Author's note. The next chapter will involve the trio saying goodbye to their families and at long last, meeting up. How does that go? Find out next time, until then.